I have been interested in personal healing since I was a teenager growing up in North Seattle, on the stolen lands of the Snohomish. I wanted to discover how to find peace within and how to heal families so that the world could become a more loving, compassionate place. I am so excited to be sharing Nonviolent Communication (NVC) because I believe this work is so meaningful. It is very important for me to contribute to others in a meaningful way and I have seen so many people benefit from the return to the consciousness of interdependence, shared power, and where all needs are held with full care. Also, sharing NVC keeps me closer to the consciousness that has become such an important, core part of my life.

To follow my interests, in 1988, I received a B.A. in sociology with a minor in history from the University of New Mexico. The next year, I received my teaching certificate for Social Studies grades 7-12. When my husband and I returned to Washington, I became an AmeriCorps volunteer and worked at Kitsap County Project Family, a nonprofit agency for the prevention of child abuse. There, I worked with pregnant and parenting teens, and parents of young children, and I learned many parenting programs and curricula.

I received my most important “degree” in 1993, when our first child was born. I then got a “double major” in 1996 when our twins were born. All the parent-education preparation didn’t help me understand how to deal with my feelings, let alone help me teach my children how to notice their thoughts and feelings and be able to hold care for themselves and others.

Finding Nonviolent Communication

Thankfully, in 2006, I was asked if I might be interested in joining an NVC parent practice group, and my life changed. NVC helped me to know how to become self-aware and how to connect with myself and others with compassion. I finally have a consciousness and the tools to share a different story about how the world works. I could keep the trust and connection with my loved ones while also supporting self-awareness and self-responsibility. I have realized my dream of helping people to heal, starting with myself, so we can be grounded adults that spread compassion to the world and can be present to the authentic stories and experiences of all the times people have been impacted by the domination culture of “who’s winning.”

Nonviolent Communication has made a great impact on every aspect of my life, and I have a sense of grounding that supports me to be present to what is, to notice my thoughts, and observe my own inner compass while also attuning to others and their experiences. NVC has benefited my relationship with myself, my children, my husband, my colleagues, and my world. I strive to help co-create spaces for wisdom to emerge.

Sharing NVC

Within the last fifteen years, I have taught third- and fourth-graders NVC using Sura Hart’s The No-Fault Classroom, and worked as an aid for four years while also serving as the school’s student-support coordinator. I have facilitated workshops and trainings for many different groups, from children to adults, including guest lecturing in a University of Washington School of Nursing communication course and for the Virginia Mason Medical Center family medicine residency program. I have supported numerous schools, parenting groups, the League of Women Voters, and faith communities, and have taught student leaders at the University of Puget Sound. I have also worked with the Q Center for LGBTQ Youth, the Sunfield Waldorf School, the Cedars Unitarian Universalist Church on Bainbridge Island, 40 Years of Zen, and the Chobo-ji Zen Center in Seattle. I have volunteered in the women’s prison in Washington, sharing NVC and mindfulness, along with training prison staff members.

I have a passion for sharing and supporting the integration of NVC with anyone who is interested in exploring self-growth and learning a different way of speaking and listening. I especially love to work with parents and teachers. I have attended NVC Family Camp with my family since 2010, I have served as staff since 2011. I provide community workshops, class series, and introductory lectures, and facilitate practice groups in Kitsap County and its surrounding areas. I also reach people all over the world online, working with individuals, organizations, families and couples and offer Nonviolent Communication mentoring and empathic coaching.  I have created a 9 month integration curriculum called Heart FELT (Foundational Experiential Learning Track) using the Pathway to Liberation Matrix for integrating NVC skills and concepts.  I provide consultation and mediation support for individuals, families and groups, along with supporting the building of Restorative Systems based on NVC. 

Assessor

In 2011, I stepped into the role of Certified Trainer within the Trainer Candidate Community Path (TCCP). Ever since, I have remained with this learning community, giving and receiving so much learning and companionship. I am now an Assessor-in-training to be a co-companion and co-explorer for those wanting to integrate nonviolence consciousness into their lives more deeply. This community has been exploring how to decolonize NVC, and how to expand our awareness of the impact of domination culture and bring in awareness of experiences of not having access to influence to meet needs while also caring for ourselves amid the impact of the domination culture.  In 2023 I took on the role of Assessor with TCCP, a community based assessment group (see www.livinginterdependence.org).